Living in the now

When you’re working hard at your life, it’s easy to get caught up in the future. The home you want. The car you want. The vacations you’ll take. The amazing business you’ll have. The work-life balance you’ll one day get. The time you’ll spend with your family and friends. Or the negatives that you’ll resolve – the dishes that will be done, the squeaky door you’re going to get fixed, the fridge you’ll clean out, the laundry that won’t be piled up.

Stop for a moment. Just a moment. Breathe.

This is where you are – in this moment. Right now. All that other stuff is in the future. Right now, you have the opportunity to live. To breathe. To know this is your present.

On Friday morning, I woke up, started my day and thought, “This is today. It’s gorgeous. Breakfast tastes delicious. This coffee smells wonderful. Life is good.”

And I cancelled all my plans and cleared the day.

This is what my afternoon looked like:

A moment or two later, while I was gazing at a sea bird, I noticed something moving, just a stone’s throw from the shore. It was a harbour seal.

I didn’t snap a picture of the seal, though. It was one of those joys that, where, if you look down for a moment, it will be gone. So I kept my gaze on the seal till it dove into the water and disappeared.

My Friday was beautiful. I feel so fortunate to have designed my work so that I can do that, especially when I spent two days last week on vacation at the beach.